Dallas Cowboys Season Preview: Schedule Preview.

Last season the Cowboys were a streaky team, whether it was winning or losing, but their schedule was favorable and they disappointed themselves finishing 9-7.

The Cowboys, in addition to facing their division foes twice, faced the NFC West, AFC North as well as the Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Although the Cowboys did lose seven games last season, five of those games were to playoff teams, and only the Washington Redskins and St. Louis Rams didn't make the playoffs.

This season the Cowboys face NFC South and AFC West as well as Seattle, who they have a recent rivalry with and Green Bay who they've beat the past two seasons.

Schedule Overview.

The Cowboys start the season on the road for the against the Buccaneers, who they beat last season with Brad Johnson starting, however it was the defense that won the game for the Cowboys holding the Buccaneers to just nine points.

The Cowboys then have to face the top two NFC teams from last year in the division New York Giants and the Carolina Panthers. The Giants and Cowboys split their two-game series last season and games between these two teams are always exciting.

After that things get a bit easier for the Cowboys as they play two AFC West teams that have new coaches in the Denver Broncos and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs finished at 2-14 last season while the Broncos, like the Cowboys missed the playoffs by one game as they finished 8-8.

The Cowboys then have their bye week before hosting two games in a row against the Atlanta Falcons and Seattle Seahawks. The Cowboys last played both teams in 2006. They beat the Falcons but lost to the Seahawks in the Wild Card round.

The Cowboys then hit the road for their first match-up against the Eagles, where their season ended so abruptly last year, then they head to Green Bay to play the Packers.

The Cowboys finish off November against the Redskins and Oakland before heading into December, a month they have dreaded in recent years as it marks a horrendous losing record.

The Cowboys start December with some old reunions.

First they face the San Diego Chargers; Cowboys Head Coach Wade Phillips former team and the new team for former Cowboys linebacker Kevin Burnett. The Cowboys then head to New Orleans to play the Saints and will see their former Offensive Coordinator Sean Payton, who is the Head Coach for the Saints.

The Cowboys then finish the season against two division foes in the Redskins and Eagles.

Observation.

The Cowboys went 9-7 last season amid all the issues they had and the cupcake practices the Wade Phillips held, so the talent is there, now they just have to work hard.

The Cowboys are blessed with playing the AFC West. The Raiders are a running joke, Kansas City have Matt Cassel and new coach Todd Haley but the same parts around that led them to a 2-14 record last season. The Broncos also have a new coach to work with and a new Quarterback in Kyle Orton.

The NFC South presents a harder challenge as it sent two teams to the playoffs in the Falcons and Panthers and along with the NFC East had no team in the division finish under .500. Green Bay should be another win and Tampa Bay isn't expected to do much with a new coach and most of its known veterans being released by the team.

The Cowboys will have tough division games as the Eagles and Giants have signed good free agents as well as draft picks ready to play immediately. The Redskins have a lot of potential, but the same thing was said last year, and throwing 100 million dollars at one player doesn't make a team better. 

My prediction is that the Cowboys will go 10-6. The defense will be just as good if not better than last season. They'll lose at least one game they're supposed to win but at the same time they'll turn some heads and surprise the critics that think Romo will not perform as well without T.O. If Roy Williams can step up and have a solid season he can silence all this critics including former Cowboys Troy Aikman, Michael Irving and Deion Sanders as well as Matt Mosley who compared Williams' receiving skills to Safety Pat Watkins.